Going Downhill From Here
by DElenaLover4Ever
Summary: College student Elena Gilbert, meets Damon Salvatore in a rather unfamiliar situation. Sparks fly higher than usual but she knows it can't end well from day one. AH/AU
1. Prologue

**Summary** : College student Elena Gilbert, meets Damon Salvatore in a rather unfamiliar situation. Sparks fly higher than usual but she knows it can't end well from day one.

**A\N** : I want to thank Cher ( Cher Sue ) and give her a million hugs if I can because she is the one who encouraged me to write this, and also for her AWESOME beta skills ( Even if it's temporary ) and if you're not reading her story A Woman's Worth, then what are you doing on ?!

_**Disclaimer : I do NOT own The Vampire Diaries or its characters, they belong to their rightful owners. I just like to play with them so don't sue me ;) **_

* * *

Excited, that was how Elena Gilbert was feeling when she got a letter from NYU telling her she'd been accepted to the University.

Elena was 19 years old, soon to be 20. She was a regular small town girl with big dreams and good grades, a brunette with long straight hair, brown eyes and a nice healthy figure.

Her parents , Grayson and Miranda Gilbert, had always supported her in everything she chose to undertake... well, _almost _everything_, which she found out the hard way _when her dad didn't approve of her going to NYU, _"Because it's in another city, " _and _"Bad things could happen to you."_ But, it took some joint efforts with Mommy Gilbert to double-team him and after some time, they managed to convince him to let her go and live her own life. After all, how could one man stand against two very wide and pleading chocolate doe-eyes?

And then Elena was calling her best friend, Caroline Forbes, screaming away the good news and telling her to come over.

* * *

_Later in Elena's room .. _

"So when are you leaving?" Caroline asked when they were sitting on Elena's bed having some much needed girl time.

Elena paused the movie they were watching - The Notebook, Caroline's favorite movie - and turned to look at her friend's watery eyes, unsure whether it was a reaction from the movie or at the thought of not seeing her best friend for a while.

To say that Elena was dreading this part of their time together was an understatement. She hesitated before saying, "The day after tomorrow, Care," and then went to hug her so tightly that Caroline laughed through her unshed tears.

"You're suffocating me, 'Lena."

So Elena reluctantly released her, allowing her to breathe before she continued. "I hate leaving you, Care, but you're going to California. But I promise I'll call you every single day, and so will you, deal?"

Caroline wiped her tears and smiled happily, saying, "Look at us; we're a couple of badass girls, going after our dreams. Who would have thought?"

".. Yeah, we sure are, " Elena said quietly, fighting tears of her own. And so they fell silent again, continuing to watch the movie distractedly, each wrapped in their own thoughts until Caroline suddenly spoke.

"We're totally going on a shopping spree tomorrow, right? We're going to need new stuff for the new 'us'," she commented matter-of-factly and an ear-to-ear grin, as if daring Elena to disagree with her, but the brunette had learnt her lesson not to ever come between Caroline Forbes and her love for some retail therapy.

Besides, she was absolutely right about needing some new stuff for the new journey they were about to embark on. "Sure, why not?" Elena shrugged, smiling in agreement and from the look on Caroline's face, it was a satisfying answer.

* * *

Elena was tired, drop dead tired.

Caroline has no mercy when it comes to shopping. She left late after completing their movie date night, but not before barking out her orders at the exhausted brunette. "I'm picking you up tomorrow, 11 a.m. sharp. You better be awake and ready to hit the mall,"she had warned.

Elena thought she was ready, but the fact that they wiped out the entire mall in 4 hours and bought a whole new wardrobe made her think and _feel _that no one would ever be ready for that kind of a shopping spree.

_Now, I better start packing if I plan on getting some sleep and rest before waking up early tomorrow, _she thought and opened two suitcases on the bed and started the process of folding, arranging the clothes into the suitcase and repeat…

Now that she was packed, had dinner and showered, it was finally time to get some sleep after an eventful day.

Setting the alarm for 7:00 a.m. the next morning because her flight was at 12:00 noon and giving herself time to look presentable, she fell asleep with a smile on her face and one last thought of an exciting future in _New York_.

* * *

The shrill sound of her alarm went off the next morning, the day that Elena Gilbert became a University student in a different city, in adifferent state.

Stretching out in bed for the last time in a while, she yawned loudly and then proceeded to indulge in a half-hour long shower, and started going through her normal hair routine, but with a slight difference. She blow dried it as always but instead of straightening it she lightly curled her hair to give it a wavy look.

When it came to getting dressed, she was wary about what Caroline insisted on making her wear; Caroline had picked a loose blue and white tank top, dark skinny jeans and a white leather jacket, completed with high heeled brown sandals and a long necklace that rested in between her breasts.

She wore them anyway and kept her make-up simple, adding just a hint of light pink lip gloss, and darkened her mascara and that was it. Elena looked around her room for the last time before closing the door behind her, feeling a pang of sadness as she did.

Squaring her shoulders for some much-needed strength, she made her way downstairs for breakfast, only to find everyone dressed and waiting for her. Her mother's eyes were teary and her father looked like he was barely holding it together, trying to maintain his manly façade while blinking back tears but her brother, Jeremy was another story. He didn't utter a single word to her all the way to the airport.

When they got to the airport, Elena jumped out of the car when she saw Caroline waiting right outside the departure hall entrance with her boyfriend Matt. Smiling broadly at the sight of her dearest friends, she went to them and threw her arms around them both and soon she found herself being hugged by her parents and then her brother as he whispered in her ear, "I'll miss you big sis."

She looked up at his taller frame, resisting the urge to cry as she whispered back, "I'll miss you, too." It was typical of Jeremy, not wanting to seem weak in front of others, so he opted to show his affection for her the only way he knew how; secretly.

Then, the announcement for her flight came over the speakers, so she went around to hug her parents one last time, promising to call as soon as the plane landed and then turned towards the gates towards her future.

* * *

Once the plane had landed, the flight attendant woke Elena up from her semi-nap, jolting her awake as she stammered a thank you before gathering her purse and left the plane with the other passengers.

Elena called everyone at home to let them know that she had arrived safely as soon as she set foot in the airport while waiting for her luggage. She wasn't too overwhelmed, that was until she finished everything and found out that the University had sent someone to help her and accompanied her until she had settled in.

* * *

The tensed silence in the car was getting on her nerves, so she tried to start a conversation with the guy who was behind the wheel.

"You didn't tell me your name yet, it'll be a bit helpful if I know it," Elena called out in a hesitant tone from the backseat.

The quiet guy answered her without even sparing her a glance. "My name is Trevor, Miss Gilbert," he said with an evidently bored tone.

_How rude,_ she thought. When it became clear that he wasn't going to add anything else to ease the silence, she gave up on trying to be polite and stopped the almost-conversation herself, letting her eyes wander over the streets of New York through the side windows. The ride from the airport to the University took almost an hour, and the minute she felt the car slowing to a stop, she lifted her eyes to see the huge building in front of her.

_I'm finally here, this is my dream coming true._

As she started getting out of the car, Trevor spoke up for the second time since they got into the car. "Since you're already an accepted student, you must now go to the secretary and give her your particulars. She will give the directions to your dorm room, and you'll be living with a roommate for the rest of the duration at the University. Any questions?"

Elena shook her head mutely and gave him a small smile as a thank you for the ride and for finally speaking more than a single sentence in her presence. He then nodded with a tight smile on his lips and pointed her to the right direction to the secretary's office.

She went there gladly just because she didn't feel like spending another minute in his company, finding the office without any problems. She knocked on the door twice before she heard a female voice saying, asking her to, "Come in."

She opened the door carefully to be greeted with a lovely sight; the entire office was furnished in dark caramel and white color, every piece nicely put together. She must've looked like she was in awe because when the secretary smiled at her, she realized that she had been staring and blushed.

_Not a good way to start, Gilbert, get it together, _she told herself_._

The secretary stood up from her desk and extended her hand to Elena. "Hello, I'm Rose. You must be Elena Gilbert," she greeted with a warm and friendly smile. This was a much better reception than the one she just experienced with the surly Trevor.

Returning the gesture, Elena shook the offered hand and nodded, saying, "Yes I am. The driver – Trevor - said that I should come here to get the information on where I'll be staying?"

At the mention of her accommodation, Rose's face fell a little and that worried Elena a little, wondering if there was some kind of problem. The secretary answered her unspoken question, confirming her worry. "Umm, yes, Miss Gilbert, but there has been a complication regarding where you'll be staying."

That caused Elena's brows to furrow. "What do you mean by 'complication'?"

"You won't be staying at the dorms for at least 3 weeks or one month, Miss Gilbert," Rose began apologetically. "The room we set up for you and your roommate was flooded with water and it will take some time to fix it."

"But where do I stay until then?" She began to feel slightly panicky at the thought of not having anywhere to go until then. What if she had to rent her own place in the mean time?

It was as if Rose could sense her increasing concern as she was quick to reassure her. "Not to worry, we've arranged a place for you to stay with another student in their apartment," she explained hastily. "It's not very far from here, just ten minutes away, actually."

Hearing that, Elena breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she didn't need to sort it out on her own. For a moment, she actually thought that she didn't have a place to stay. Nodding her appreciation, she smiled up at Rose and said, "Thank you. Can you give me the address, please?"

Rose gave her two sheets of papers and told her, "The small one has the address, and the other one is your class schedule. Your first class starts next Monday."

Elena grinned and thanked her again, and was about to turn around to exit when Rose called after her. "Oh and Elena, Trevor will be with you just for today, after that you're on your own," she informed her, nearly drawing out a groan from the younger girl. She was so not looking forward to spending her first day in New York stuck with an unfriendly grouch!

Left with no other choice, Elena nodded and gave her a little wave of her hand before she sauntered to the door, closing it behind her. Back at the car, she found Trevor waiting, looking bored out of his mind. Wordlessly, she handed him the address as she got into the back seat, feeling excited to meet her new roommate.

* * *

Sure enough, ten minutes later, Trevor pulled up in front of a tall building and helped her with her bags up to the apartment door and left without so much of a goodbye. Shaking her head, she rapped her knuckles on the door three times before she heard some shuffling behind it and the door swung open to reveal a…..

….Guy.

NOT a girl, but a guy. A very _good-looking_ guy, to be exact. That was all she could process in her mind at that time. _That_, and also that he had the most beautiful baby blue eyes she'd ever seen, but just as the shock came, it was gone in an instant.

"What the –" they both said before closing their mouths at the same time. Elena decided to approach this whole matter politely, just in case there was some kind of mistake or a misunderstanding, like maybe her _female_ roommate had a 'friend' over who apparently just woke up, judging by his lack of clothing save for his pants. _Stop staring,_ she scolded herself as her eyes wandered down his bare torso against her will.

"Umm, hi, I'm Elena Gilbert, the new roommate," she said awkwardly as she tried valiantly to avert her eyes from the very appealing display of chest that he wasn't shy of parading in front of a stranger.

She then saw how his face went from shock to anger before he contained himself and replied with fake enthusiasm, "Welcome. I'm Damon Salvatore, your _roomie_, I guess. Have a seat, I'll be back." He grabbed her luggage and ushered her into the living room before he disappeared into one of the rooms.

Left with nothing else to do but wait, Elena took a seat on one of the couches and looked around the apartment, finding it to be surprisingly clean for a guy_'s _place. She had seen her brother's room way too many times to conclude that 'boys' and 'clean' usually didn't belong in the same sentence.

Her train of thoughts stopped when she heard his voice and someone else's getting louder, belatedly realizing the identity of the person on the other end of the line; Rose.

_Why is he using the speaker phone? _

"….when you said a roommate, I naturally thought you meant a guy NOT a girl, Rose!" his voice boomed over the thin walls of his room.

There was a moment of silence before she heard Rose answering firmly, "Well, unfortunately, there is nothing I can do about what you thought _and_ what is happening, Damon. Be nice, now goodbye."

_Click._

Elena heard him coming back out, so she busied herself looking at the design of the apartment, trying to act as if she hadn't been eavesdropping on his rather abrupt end of his telephone conversation with the secretary. Damon came back, now dressed in a black shirt that clung to him like a second skin, looking even more gorgeous but rather grumpy.

"Looks like we'll be stuck living together for the next month, so here are the rules," he started saying as he crossed his arms, appearing to be impatient now. "Rule number one; do not – under any circumstances – come into my room. Rule number two, when you leave a room, I want it to be _exactly_ the way it was when you found it, okay? I don't like cleaning up after _anyone _but myself, are we clear?"

Elena just met the guy and already, she was planning ways to kill him, it didn't matter how attractive she initially thought he was. She narrowed her eyes and nodded, feeling too tired to argue with anyone and when he smiled, feeling satisfied that he established his 'rules', she became furious. So, she stood up and shrug off her jacket, throwing it onto the seat where she sat defiantly, then said to him, "I see that there is only one bathroom, so when you use it please keep in mind that there is a person that will use it after you, am _I_ clear? And which one is _my_ room?"

Feeling a little more in control of her plight, she lifted her chin up proud that she wasn't taking flak from this stranger who made the mistake of underestimating her. That feeling, however, was lost when he arched an eyebrow and approached her with deliberate steps until he invaded her personal space.

"Your room is on the left, Miss Elena Gilbert. Please, make yourself at home," he smirked, completely unfazed by her act of defiance. He stood his ground, not backing away as he stared down at her, daring her to defy him once more, so she pushed past him and made her way to the room that was now hers, making sure to slam the door behind her.

Damon released a quiet chuckle, shaking his head at the now-closed door. _She's got a hot body AND an attitude. Definitely going to be a hell of a month,_ he thought to himself, heading to the kitchen to make some coffee.

* * *

Elena sat on the bed, admiring the simply styled room before thinking, '_I'm in some deep shit here. I have to get a grip on myself around this guy_!' She decided to call her best friend and tell her the interesting events of her day and perhaps even ask for some advice.

Caroline answered on the second ring. "Elena! I miss you already and it hasn't even been a day. Did you get settled in already?" the blonde's voice was her usual exuberant tone, making her smile fondly despite the crappy day she was having in New York so far.

"I miss you too, Care, and yes, I _did_ get settled in but I have to tell you something and you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone, _especially_ my parents, okay?"

Caroline was silent for a while but then quickly agreed anyway. She wasn't the type to shy away from learning about juicy tidbits, especially if she was sworn to secrecy before. "Okay, I promise. Now spill!"

Elena started from the beginning and told her friend everything, from her meeting with Rose, the secretary to how she was now in a different room and a different roommate. On Caroline's part, she did her fair share of appropriate gasps and mutterings at the right parts of the story .

"And _here_ is the worst part; my roommate is guy," I announced finally, drawing a cry of surprise from her.

Caroline was definitely not expecting that. "A guy! How - why – wait, is he _hot_?" I could always count on her to be completely inappropriate at any given time.

"I don't know how _and_ why, but I already told you about my room situation. And as for the last question..." Elena paused, thinking about his jet black hair, his baby blue eyes and his whole body for that matter, she blushed as she answered, "Yes, he _is_ hot, but he is also a jerk and I have to live with him for a whole month. Ugh."

Caroline didn't answer right away but when she did, I almost laughed out loud. "And you called to ask me how to be around him and not lose your hormonal control, right?"

That's what Elena loves about Caroline; her ability to read anyone's mind. It also helps that the they have been friends since they were left to play in a sandbox by their mothers.

"Yes, Caroline , that's _exactly_ why I called. Now will Your Majesty grace me with her advice?" Elena added the last part mockingly before they both burst out laughing.

When their laughter calmed, Caroline got serious and down to business. "Okay, listen carefully," she ordered. "The key to keeping your control of the situation is to make _him_ lose control. When he says something snarky to you, you don't give him the satisfaction that he's getting on your nerves. You reply with something snarkier, see where I'm going with this?"

Elena thought about that advice before answering, "So basically, you're saying that I should push his buttons and not let him push mine?"

"Yes, you _are_ smart! And I thought the only thing you've got going were your looks," Caroline teased her, giggling wildly.

Elena joined in on her hilarity, feeling much better than she did before she made the call. "Hey, I'm not the one who's blonde here," she teased right back. "Look, I have to go now. I've got some unpacking and planning to do, so thanks for the chat! Bye, Care."

"Good luck! Bye 'Lena."

_Click. _

Elena set her cell on the nightstand and proceeded to unpack everything for the next hour. She then decided that it was time for her plan to begin and so she changed into her usual pajama shorts and a tank top. Normally she wasn't one to show her pajamas to anyone, but she figured it was time for some payback because no one invades her personal space and gets away that easily!

She opened the door cautiously and found him sitting in the living room, watching TV and eating something similar to takeout food. She was tempted to cover herself up when he noticed her but the way his eyes travelled leisurely over her body from her legs up to her face had her forgetting her shyness.

She felt herself blushing a little but she refused to let it spoil her plan. "Hey, I was wondering if you have anything good to eat for dinner? I wanted to sleep early so I can get up and go for a jog."

Damon cleared his throat and turned his head back to the TV when he found himself staring at her and answered "Yeah, I just bought some Chinese takeout. I didn't know what you like so I ordered you the same as me."

"Umm, thanks," Elena replied as she walked over to where the food was, feeling his eyes on her all the way there. She secretly smirked to herself when she turned and caught him looking at her.

He played it nice, though, acting as if she wasn't affecting him at all. "There are drinks in the fridge, if you want."

Elena smiled, "No thanks, I'll just drink some water for now."

She deliberately chose to sit on a chair beside him, watching whatever that was on TV as they ate in silence. Neither of them could focus because there was only a small table separating them and the few times that their hands accidentally brushed with each other's, there seemed to be an electric current that ran between them.

Damon thought that the silence should be broken sooner rather than later, so he ventured to break the ice. "So, do you go jogging every morning?" he asked suddenly.

His voice seemed unnaturally loud after the lengthy silence that stretched between them making Elena almost jumped out of her skin. "No, just on weekends," she answered hastily. "You?"

He let out a short chortle when he heard her question. "No, if you haven't noticed, I don't get up early nor do I need to run every morning. I mean, have you _seen_ me?"

Elena rolled her eyes, apparently she won't be able to have a civil conversation with him at all. He was much too smug for his own good. "Yes, I _have_ seen you, and I don't need to run _every_ morning either, but it's nice to do it anyway, Mr. Big-Headed-Much?"

That made him shut up for a few seconds and look at her, their eyes connecting for a split second before Elena got up. "I'm going to sleep," she announced before heading back to her room.

_I'm so gonna regret this_, Damon thought to himself as he called out to her. "Wait, wait!"

She paused right outside her bedroom door but didn't turn fully around to face him, so he sighed, deciding to call a truce for now. "I'm sorry, I'm being an ass. How about we go get some coffee tomorrow? I'll help you get to know the places around here," he suggested in a hopeful tone. He didn't know why but there was something about her that made him want to get to know her.

Elena finally turned to him, suppressing a feeling like she really shouldn't go anywhere with him. "Fine, goodnight, Damon," she conceded before she went seeking for the sanctuary of her room.

* * *

_Next Morning…_

Elena woke up when her alarm went off at 6:00 a.m. She didn't even sleep that much and she wished that this was because it was the first time sleeping on a different bed in a new environment, but she would be lying to herself then. The cause of her restless night was currently sleeping in the next room, but the real reason why she was worried about him, she didn't exactly know_._

Deciding it was now or never, Elena got up and tied her hair in a ponytail, then dressed herself in black yoga pants, olive colored tank top and her favorite Adidas sneakers before left her room to grab a water bottle from the kitchen. She was about ready to leave and was checking that her iPod and headphones were with her when she saw the bathroom door open and Damon coming out of it. At first he was surprised to see that she actually got up at this ungodly hour, but the way she looked in that apparel made him want to do things that were possibly far from her imagination.

"So you're actually going?" he asked in disbelief, his voice still gruff with sleep.

"Yeah, changed your mind yet?" Elena countered with an arched eyebrow and a hand on her hip, an unspoken challenge in her eyes.

He seemed to be thinking it over for a moment before saying, "I'm willing to give it a shot, so wait for me okay?"

"Okay," she nodded. _Yeah right, like I'm actually gonna wait for him, _she thought while he went back into his room. The second he closed the door behind him, she counted to ten before quietly opening the front door and sprinting down the stairs with one thought in mind; _Elena - 1, Damon –0. _

Damon, on the other hand, didn't hear the door and actually thought she was waiting so when he came back out of his room to find a deserted living room, he rolled his eyes in exasperation and went back inside, slamming the door shut in frustration. He thought of only _one_ thing before going back to sleep; _It's on, Miss Elena Gilbert. _

* * *

**A\N 2** : If you have reached this author note then **THANK YOU** **!** for reading, and now how about dropping a review to tell me if I should continue or not, and maybe consider to be my beta ? ;)

You can see all the outfits in this chapter on Promisebreaker . Polyvore . Com (Remove spaces )

And if you like to fangirl over DElena or just talk follow me on **Twitter** : NoBodyOwnsYou_


	2. A 1st Time New Yorker

_**Hey there you wonderful readers, hope it's not too late of an update for you guys but I'm trying my best to get it as early as possible for me.**_

_**A big thanks to the AWESOME people who helped me bring this chapter to you; Cher Sue, xxxMrsSalvatorexxx, feelingfivefeetsmall. *group hugs you***_

_**P.S: after you finish reading this chapter, go read A Woman's Worth by Cher Sue and give her a hard time about the last chapter. *insert evil laugh***_

_**Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Vampire Diaries or its characters; this is just a little fantasy ;) **_

_**Now on with the story...**_

* * *

_Now you got me screaming_

_And I cannot shut up_

_Now I'm lying on the bedroom floor_

_Barely even speaking_

_And I cannot get up_

_Stutter – Maroon 5_

Elena was back sooner than she would have liked, although she did round the block six times. She tried to sneaking into the apartment, hoping to avoid her new roommate and get straight to her room, but found herself having no such luck, seeing as he was fully awake and dressed, talking animatedly on his cell. She stopped for a moment to appreciate the sight he was offering, dressed all in black; black shirt, black jeans and to top it all off, he wore a black leather jacket to complete the look of a dangerous bad boy. With pale skin, black hair and those piercingblue eyes of his, she was almost turned on. _God, he is hot,_ she thought to herself before clearing her throat a little, mentally chiding herself for being drawn to him again.

When he took notice of her, he said his goodbye to whomever he was talking to; she became very self conscious about how she must look with her messy ponytail and sweaty look. He didn't say anything to her and the silence soon became awkward so she decided to break it.

"Hey, good morning...again." She then remembered what she did this morning and let a small smirk appear on her lips. "Oh and sorry about this morning, I waited, but you took your time and I was in a hurry," she said, faking innocence.

_In a hurry my ass_, he thought as he smiled and replied sarcastically, "Yeah well, I'm not a morning person. I like to sleep as much as I can on weekends, only God knows we won't be getting much of it when college starts on Monday." He stopped for a beat before saying, "Well, are you going to shower so I can take you for that coffee or what?"

Elena nodded and went to her room, got her clothes, towel and then to the bathroom when she heard him say while flashing a little wink, "You know you could've just left your clothes on the bed and I would've gladly given them to you."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I don't like leaving my clothes behind for anyone to see. But I get it if you don't understand the concept." she said, smiling sweetly before closing the door behind her, loving that she managed to shut him up even if it was just temporary.

Damon, on the other hand, was slightly turned on by her attitude, although other emotions were competing with lust and one of them was anger. It appeared that he wanted her and despised her in equal measures.

He wanted her and he would see to it that he would get her soon; he was nothing, if not persistent. Glancing at his watch, he noted with a roll of his eyes, that she took a good fifteen minutes inside, so he knocked a bit louder than necessary. "Hurry up please if you wish to go sightseeing today," he called out through the door, "otherwise, I'm leaving."

He heard the water turn off before she answered, "Fine, just relax before your hair falls out."

Elena made sure to take her own sweet time getting dressed and blow drying her hair, then gathering it up in a messy bun and got dressed in a yellow tank top, a mini denim skirt and yellow flat sandals because she didn't want to have sore feet by the time they got back.

Damon was about to knock again when she opened the door and he stepped aside to let her through, but not before giving her a once over, checking out her long legs for a few seconds more. Elena felt the heat rising to her cheeks, so she walked her way around him to her room, calling out over her shoulders as he kept his eyes on her, "Just let me get my purse and cell then we're out."

She didn't _just_ get her purse and cell, she also put on some lip gloss and some light bronze eye shadow and perfume. _There, now I'm ready,_ she smiled to herself and left the room.

When they got out of the apartment she asked him, "So, what are we doing first?"

"First, since you're obviously a first time New Yorker. I could take you in my car but, you have to learn how to get a taxi around here" he said coming to a stop on the sidewalk, he smirked "Besides, your girly perfume would be stuck in my car and even though it smells good, I don't want to smell it every time I get in the car," he added as a second thought just to piss her off.

Elena was taken a back a bit by that comment, if he wished to insult her he didn't succeed in doing so. All her brain registered was "_it smells good", _damn her hormones and their inappropriate timing. It wasn't like she didn't see boys or got complimented by them before; it's just that getting complimented by _the one next to her_ kinda doubled the effect she would normally have.

So she wisely chose to ignore what he said last and just focus on the topic they were originally discussing.

"How hard can it be? It's just a taxi" Elena asked with raised eyebrows.

Damon chuckled and said "Oh trust me, it's hard in New York," and then proceeded to show her how. Apparently her technique of waving was not going to work, because every taxi she saw just drove past them like they weren't standing there. Damon laughed at her and said she had to ' whistle ' to get a driver's attention and demonstrated how to whistle really loud, stopping a taxi almost immediately.

When they got into the taxi, Damon told the driver where to go, but he saw her frown get deeper by the second so he asked "Why are you frowning?"

She turned to look at him saying "I'll never make it here."

"And why is that?"

"Because I can't whistle. Like, at all." she told him in all seriousness.

He stared at her for a whole three seconds before his laughter broke free "You're not serious, right? Because if you are, I can teach you how." he looked her dead in the eyes and his tone dropped a little when he said the last part, and the double meaning was not lost on Elena, who thanked the heavens when the driver interrupted the sexual tension by saying "We're here." Damon paid him and got out after Elena.

"Starbucks? Seriously? We got a cab just to come here?"

"Well, this where we'll get that coffee from. Also, I don't operate on empty stomach and neither should you, and if you haven't noticed, we haven't had breakfast yet." He gave her a pointed look before tilting his head towards the entrance "Come on, it won't take forever unless you keep standing there."

He turned and opened the door for her to walk in, they ordered, got a table and when the coffee and muffins came they ate in a comfortable silence.

"So tell me about yourself a little." Damon said as he finished his muffin and took a sip of the still hot coffee. The need to know more about her was making him slightly impatient.

"What do want to know?" Elena answered after swallowing her last piece of muffin.

He shrugged "Well you don't look like the big city girl. So where you're from would be a start."

"I'm from Mystic Falls, Virginia. And how did you figure that I wasn't from a big city?" Elena asked surprised.

"I've been to Chicago, California and all similar places and they're all the same girls, but you, you're different." Elena let his answer sink in and didn't feel like she wanted to know exactly how 'different' she was. He wasn't done with his game of twenty questions though, "So why New York University?"

Elena didn't hesitate to answer this one "I wanted to get out of that small town, see the world." he nodded understandingly and continued "And what are you studying?

"Business management"

"Really?! We'll be seeing each other a lot then."

"You study business management too?" Elena asked surprise clear on her face, Damon didn't get why she was surprised by that, but chose not to comment on it and only answered, "Yes, but not in the same year. I'm a year older."

They fell into silence once again, but someone broke it eventually, "Shall we go see the Big Apple's hottest spots?" Damon suggested when they finished and paid and Elena nodded excitedly.

* * *

They started at the Empire State Building, and Elena was hesitant at first because she and heights didn't get along, but Damon dragged her all the way up, promising that the view is worth it.

And boy was it worth it, the ability to see everything from atop was breathtaking, and they would've stayed longer, but Damon said there are other places to be seen before the night falls.

He then took her to the Metropolitan Museum of Art; she learned that it has over two million pieces of artwork from around the world. There was a particular painting that had her attention; it was called Madonna and Child by Duccio di Buoninsegna. Although she couldn't say the artist's name right, the painting still captured her attention as it showed an intimate moment between a mother and her only child.

Unlike Elena, Damon wasn't that much of a fan for art. Elena figured as much by his obvious lack of interest and his one-worded comments on every painting they passed.

Their last stop for the day was Central Park.

Damon said "How about we buy some ice cream and just walk around the park for a while?"

Elena agreed easily because she was distracted by the sight, they walked together to the nearest ice cream shop.

"What's your favorite flavor?" Damon asked when they were next in line.

"Vanilla, you?" Elena said to him, waiting for his answer after he got them their ice cream.

"Chocolate, I don't do _vanilla_" he answered and wiggled his eyebrows just as the man handed him his ice cream.

_We are still talking about ice cream, right?_, she wondered as she followed him.

The walk around the park was great, if she was able to ignore the fact that every woman that passed them couldn't take her eyes off Damon, _or_ the fact that he seemed used to it.

He looked like he was trying to ignore her even when he kept a light conversation going by asking more questions, among those questions, he asked about her best friend.

Elena felt like the questions were getting more personal every time, but she answered anyway, "My best friend is Caroline Forbes; she isn't your typical blonde bubble head. She _is_ sometimes shallow, but when time calls for it, she can see through your walls no matter how thick they are—," Elena stopped for a moment feeling too emotional all of sudden. Then her cell started ringing, she got it out from her purse and smiled when she saw Caroline's name on her screen, "Speak of the devil." She muttered before answering happily, "Caroline! I was just talking about you. How's California treating you?" She said while sitting on a bench, Damon following suit because he was texting someone.

"I'm fine, and California is treating me so, _so_ perfectly. Why were you talking about me? Or more importantly, _who_ were you talking to about me?"

Elena ignored those questions, "And you mean by, 'so, so perfectly', that you already found a hot guy drooling over you?" She asked. Elena knew that she wasn't off the hook, but she was trying to distract her friend with something more interesting.

But that didn't work so well for her, judging by how Caroline answered, "Ah, you're deflecting, looks like that talk about control is gone with the wind in only a day. And yes, I have found a hot guy, more than one actually," she said matter-of-factly.

"I'm _NOT_ deflecting, just choosing not to answer your questions because it is simply not the time for it. And my control is just fine." Elena answered nervously, which captured Damon's attention, _deflecting? Control? What are they talking about?_,he turned to Elena who was getting more flustered by the second, because she knew that he would figure out that he is the center of her conversation with Caroline. He's handsome, but surely not stupid.

"Fine, fine, I'll shut up but we're soo not done with this conversation." Caroline said sensing that she embarrassed her friend enough, Elena was thankful that her friend decided to give her a break even if it's temporary, "Okay, now would you hang up before you ruin everything any further? Please." She pleaded with her friend.

"Bye 'Lena, tell him I said hi." Caroline almost sang the sentence.

_Click._

Damon was still looking at her after she finished her call with Caroline, watching her silently as if trying to find something. "So, that was Caroline? She's in California?" He broke the horrible silence, taking pity on her when she looked everywhere as if she was trying to find a hole to hide herself in.

Which was exactly her feeling, so she answered quickly, she wasn't sure she even spoke English,"Huh? Yes...yeah that was her, she just moved today to California. Can we please leave now?"

He looked at his cell before answering her, smirking while saying "Yeah, sure. I'm waiting for someone to come over anyway."

Elena got up from the bench and didn't question him on who he was waiting for and she couldn't care less about that. All she cared about was getting to her room before Caroline calls again.

They walked silently out of the park and got a taxi to get back to the apartment, and what she meant by silently, was that she was silent and he was beside her texting all the way until she poked him in the side, "Will you give him the address before he dies from waiting?" she was almost yelling in his face while pointing at the driver.

He wasn't affected in the slightest; he gave the address to the driver without taking his eyes off his cell screen_._

When Damon _finally _put his cell in his pocket, he stayed quiet and Elena was grateful for that. Unbeknownst to her, Damon was just thinking about how his next move would piss her off.

When they finally arrived, they paid the driver, went upstairs, where Elena was surprised to see a girl waiting at their apartment door. She was even more surprised when Damon smiled widely at her. He didn't even give her a chance to speak, because when she opened her mouth to supposedly say any form of greeting he pulled her in close by the waist and kissed her and took his time doing so. The girl didn't seem to mind much as she was almost dry humping him in front of Elena.

Elena on the other hand, was on the verge of throwing up so she stopped them because clearly they have no intention of stopping by themselves. She cleared her throat loudly and was glad that she got their attention, as they separated breathlessly from each other.

"Yeah, sorry to interrupt, but I'm still here. Could you at least open the door and then continue whatever it is you're doing?" She said.

And Damon wasn't fazed what so ever by her outburst, quite the opposite, and his smile only got wider and was about to say something when his ' friend ' interrupted, "Is she joining us, Damon? I don't mind you know." she said running her hands down his shirt.

Damon stopped her hands before they reached his belt and answered "No, Andie, Elena wouldn't be joining us but…" he turned to look at Elena with a burning look before continuing, "She's welcome to join if she feels like it."

Elena was disgusted by him, "Ugh, you wish, now would open the damn door?" Damon smirked and opened the door for her.

"I'll be in my room, try to keep it quiet." Elena said before storming inside.

Damon replied loudly when he got in with Andie, as he closed the door behind them, "Won't make any promises because I won't try." he turned back to Andie who was hungrily eyeing him and whispered very closely to her mouth "Now, where were we…hmm" before he kissed her, wrapped her legs around his waist and carried her to his room.

* * *

Elena was feeling too many emotions; and she didn't know which one she should choose to take over. Should she be enraged by his rude behavior or turned on by the sight of him kissing someone or jealous that she is _NOT_ that someone he's kissing?

_Why am I acting like this?_, She asked herself just as Caroline's name popped on her cell screen, she answered distractedly.

"Elena Gilbert, you are in so much trouble, what the hell did we talk about yesterday?!" came Caroline's angry voice, but Elena didn't know how to reply to her. "Elena? Are you still among the living?" Caroline questioned making her almost smile

"Yes, Care, I'm still alive. I think."

"Oh thank God! I thought he had his tongue down your throat and you picked up by mistake."

"No, Caroline! He doesn't have his tongue my throat, but I can't say the same about who he's with. And besides, I'm not that easy." Elena answered hurriedly.

Caroline was silent for a few seconds before she asked ,"What happened today, Elena? You sound different."

Elena sighed and answered, "Honestly, I don't know. I'm thinking that he has split personalities."

"Why would you think that?" Elena then told her about what happened today, from how she ditched him when she went jogging, to their day out in New York. "One minute he's sarcastic and rude and the next he's nice and decent. He likes to the play twenty questions game and that's how it's been all day. He now knows more about me than I know about him. All I know is his name and that he's studying business management like me." Elena finished.

But Caroline wasn't done, "What else?"

"What do you mean, 'what else'?" Elena asked, feeling nervous all of a sudden.

"Well, you're not done. What else is going on in your head?"

Elena swallowed nervously and waited for a beat before answering, "When he touches my hands and he looks at me there's something else, a current runs between us, a spark. I don't want to be caught up with him, I can't handle him Care." She confessed.

"Elena, you can handle anything, you know that. You're in New York to live your life; you just have to be careful. Don't let him into your heart." Caroline advised.

"It's not gonna be easy, but I'll try." Elena promised before continuing, "Thanks Caroline, you're the best you know?"

"I know…that's what besties are for. Now, go get some rest and decide what you're going to do next." Caroline giggled.

"Okay Care, bye."

"Bye Elena." _Click._

* * *

After trying to read some of the books she had with her, Elena gave up and went to take a shower and stayed there long enough to rest her ears from the sounds coming from the room next to her.

Apparently, the walls aren't sound proof, because she heard every moan and grunt coming from that room…and that is why she showered with cold water.

She then quickly got back to her room because she left her clothes in her room; not worrying about Damon seeing her in a towel, as he is busy with Andie, though she didn't want to take the risk of that happening. Elena blow dried her hair and got dressed in a light pink tank top and plaid light pink and black short shorts.

She laid a while in her bed re-reading one of Agatha Christie's books that she loved, not noticing immediately that the sounds stopped, but was grateful because she wanted to sleep, she just needed a glass of water.

Elena headed to the kitchen and got a glass of water and drank all of it and then another. _God, why I'm I so thirsty all of a sudden? _

She was lost in that thought that she didn't even hear Damon open his bedroom door or his steps until he was a few steps behind. She then made the mistake of turning to see him in nothing but his boxers and his hair ruffled. She let her eyes roam his chest and his sexy looking hair before meeting his eyes and feeling a blush creeping its way into her cheeks.

He was silently staring at her legs and his eyes moved slowly up, she rolled her eyes at that, _again? Really?_

But she didn't get to think further or voice her thoughts because he made his way to her and then she was trapped between him and the kitchen counter, only mere inches between their faces.

Her breathing increased with every second that passed, and she felt almost every part of his body close to her.

"What are you doing up so late?" he whispered to her and she gulped nervously and difficultly set the glass she was holding on the counter behind her before she broke it from all this tension.

"Um, I…I couldn't sleep from all the sounds you two were making." She stopped when she saw his eyes darken a shade, but tried to continue and not make him win this battle of wills, "But I'm going to sleep now, goodnight." Pushing him slightly to get around him, and she was about to make a break for her room when he grabbed her arm, turned her to him and put a hand on her waist.

Her breathing increased and to say she was scared for her life would be putting it lightly, but what he did wasn't expected. He kissed her! He pulled her closer to him and kissed her.

Her breath was cut short by that, _don't kiss back, don't kiss him back... _she kept repeating in her head, but her body betrayed her.

Just as he was about to pull back she responded and put her hands around his neck to pull him closer and kissed him back, she felt his soft lips moving against hers and his hands moving on her body and she moaned.

They stayed like that until they were both out of breath and pulled back at the same time, Elena snapped back to reality when she saw him smirk at her.

"Don't _ever_ do that again!" She hissed and ran back to the safety of her room.

Elena threw herself on her bed and breathed out a long sigh, it was only two days and she was on the verge of giving up, _how am I going to last a month?! _

_Damn you Damon Salvatore._

She then fell into a sleep full of dreams she's never thought she'd have.

* * *

**A\N: **I wanted to leave it here and make you wait to see what happens the after that incident ;) but what do you think about this story so far? No OOC Damon or Elena? Hint: answer me in a review *wink wink*

You can see Elena's outfits for each chapter on **promisebreaker . polyvore . com** (Remove spaces)

**Twitter**: **NoBodyOwnsYou_** follow me so you'll get spoilers about the story and to rant about TVD - KATHERINE IS BACK, JEREMY IS DEAD - or just to talk :)

-Jasmine


	3. Wrong Way of Seduction

_**I know, I know, I'm SUPER late. But I had the worst case of a writer's block and the show's 'new' Elena wasn't really helping my muse.**_

_**But I'm updating now, yay! So be good and read, then review, I need to know what you guys think about this chapter.**_

_**And since I'm late updating I put the day after the kiss in flashbacks (Italic) and that way we have almost two days in one chapter ;)**_

_**Thank you for everyone who reviewed, followed and fave'd this story, means a lot. **_

_**And a huge thanks to my wonderful beta(s); Cher Sue, feelingfivefeetsmall, xxxMrsSalvatorexx. **_

_**Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Vampire Diaries or its characters; this is just a little fantasy ;)**_

* * *

_**Rule number one**_

_**Is that you gotta have fun**_

_**Cause baby when you're done**_

_**Gotta be the first to run**_

"_**How To Be A Heartbreaker" – Marina and the Diamonds**_

_Elena was feeling fresh and renewed after almost two hours jogging and an hour under the hot water spray trying to convince herself that she could forget what happened yesterday and not obsess about it. After she got dressed, she stood in the kitchen, trying to put together a decent breakfast for her, her roommate and whoever the girl in his bedroom with him was._

_She set about preparing an omelet, bacon and French toast since that was all she could do for breakfast with the stuff that are in the fridge._

_She was almost finished when she heard the faint sound of a door opening and turned around to see Miss-hot-blonde stepping out of Damon's room and closing the door quietly behind her. Elena finally takes a good look at her and she finds that she's wearing Damon's shirt, and just Damon's shirt._

_When she notices Elena she smiles faintly at her saying, "Good morning. It's Elena, right?"_

_Elena nods smiling back at her tightly, "Yeah, Good morning. So are you having breakfast with us Annie-" "It's Andie, not Annie." Miss-hot-blonde interrupts, looking irritated._

_Elena continues, not interested in knowing anyone's names, "Are you having breakfast with us, Andie or?.."_

_She leaves that question open ended, since the only thing she can think of to say is; "Are you getting the hell out of here because I can't stand the sight of you and I've only just met you," but she couldn't say that, she would stay polite as ever._

_"No, thank you. I'm just going to take a shower and head out." Andie answers._

At least the girl can take a hint

_But as soon as the answer is out of her mouth, Damon makes his presence known, "Of course she's having breakfast with us, she can be a little late," He says smirking. _

_Andie and Elena are both startled momentarily because of his sudden presence as they didn't hear the bedroom door open. Oh, Mr. kisses-for-everyone is up.. Elena thinks bitterly as he walks up to Andie and kisses her quickly on the lips before whispering closely to her, "Join me for a shower?"_

_"If I'm staying for breakfast then we'll have breakfast first," Andie whispers back to him and turns to sit on one of the chairs beside the kitchen island. Damon turns his blue eyes for the first time in Elena's direction and she quickly turns back to the fridge to get some orange juice. _

_Finally acknowledging her, "Good morning to you too, Elena." _

_Is he smirking? She gets the box of juice out of the fridge and puts it on the island beside the plates she set up. She glances at him as he comes to sit down next to Andie and directly in Elena's face and finds him – as predicted – smirking at her, she replies while rolling her eyes, "Good morning Damon," she says through gritted teeth. _

_Elena resists the urge to turn to him and slap him just for the hell of it._

_She sits down and tries to keep her eyes on her plate, yet she can't help but look at how he is under-dressed, wearing only the boxers she saw him in, and look utterly flawless. It's unfair how he looks amazing when he just woke up with his sexy just-fucked hair and broad shoulders, abs and muscles flexing under his skin. Why did you have to be good looking and an ass in the same time?.. She thinks, feeling the attraction between them. _

_Unfortunately Elena is caught mid-stare by Damon when he looks up from his plate since he could literally feel her eyes burning holes through him. He chuckles softly as Elena quickly looks down at her food. They continue the rest of the meal silently, each wrapped in their own thoughts. _

_Until Andie, oblivious to the tension around her between Damon and Elena, breaks the silence. "Well, I'm done. Are you coming Damon?" _

_She turns to Damon expectantly, he smiles seductively at Andie while nodding, "Yeah, I'm coming. Thank you Elena for this satisfying breakfast, I hope you're not still upset about yesterday."_

_Elena's eyes snap to meet his smirking ones, that jerk... Elena thinks as she replies, "You're welcome, Damon." And says no more, not willing to give him the satisfaction of seeing her flustered and starts to clear the dishes._

_Miss-hot-blonde gives them a weird look but shrugs and heads off in direction of the bathroom with Damon trailing behind her, his smirk still plastered on his face._

_Elena finishes the dishes and enters her room in search of her purse so she could go exploring the shops she found while jogging earlier that morning._

_She was already dressed in fitted black jeans, a white loose top and light yellow flats. Her hair was curled from the shower and she put on some make up and grabbed her jacket and was about to head out when she heard someone calling, "Wait!, we're coming down with you." Andie said as she and Damon got out of the bedroom dressed._

_Damon was in his usual all-black bad boy persona and with freshly wet hair from the shower, Elena resisted staring at him this time because she didn't want to give him a reason to make an inappropriate comment._

_Resist the urge to stare, Elena… She kept repeating that in her head while considering to make a break for the door but didn't do it since that would make her look all kinds of crazy._

_Andie was slipping on her shoes while saying, "Damn it Damon! I'm late to work, again." Irritation was clear on her face. She was wearing a cream colored blouse with a black, short pencil skirt and she seemed used to this kind of restricting clothes because she was rushing effortlessly around the apartment looking frantic._

_"Don't worry about it, Andie; just tell your boss you were doing another report about the infamous Damon Salvatore. Again." Damon said coolly as he circled Andie's waist with one arm and led her out of the apartment door while she glared at him. _

_Elena shakes her head at how ridiculous they are while she's trailing behind them on the stairs._

_As they step on the sidewalk, Andie turns to Damon, "Are you coming with me?" _

_"No, I have to take care of some things." _

_Andie replies to him in a hurry, "Okay. Bye then, bye Elena." She smiles, waves, and goes her merry way. _

_Elena was about to do the same when Damon called after her, she was not ready to face him alone after what happened, "Wait! Where are you going? I could give you a ride." _

_"I'm not going anywhere specific, so I don't need a ride. Thank you." She says, not even turning to him. She then remembered something and turned back to him to find him looking at her intently. She almost forgot what she was going to say when she saw the intensity of his stare. "But I do have one question: umm…is she your girlfriend? You know Andie? The chick that was parading in the apartment in just your shirt…that Andie if it's so hard for you to remember."_

_He cocks his head a little to the side before answering her, his eyes never leaving her. "No, she's not. It's—"_

_"Oh, she seems to know you so I assumed that she is." Damon shook his head in negation. _

_"But what the hell did you mean when you told her 'infamous Damon Salvatore'?"Elena asks him intrigued, and he smiles. _

_A smile that doesn't reach his eyes, while saying, "You'll find out soon enough. Anything else?" He asks with lifted eyebrows. He sounds impatient; Elena rolls her eyes and shakes her head. He nods and they both go in different directions._

* * *

Waking up groggy, disoriented and with a pounding headache wasn't something that Elena was used to. As she shuts off the alarm, staring at the ceiling trying to recall why she's so hung over. _Oh right, I was at the bar last night, Damon was there and what was his name? Jackson? Jason?.. Mason! Yes Mason was there too, have to steer clear from him.._ Elena thinks vaguely remembering the event of the night before. _Hung over on my first day as college student, tsk tsk not smart Elena_, she shakes her head and is rewarded with pain. Everywhere.

She scrambles out of the bed and gets up to shower, and as she gathers her clothes for the day she finds a glass of orange juice and two painkillers on the nightstand. She takes them gratefully and finishes the orange juice.

Making her way out of the room, she finds Damon sitting in the kitchen having breakfast; he glances up when she makes her way directly to get a glass of water, her eyes not meeting his.

He rolls his eyes at her behavior, _you were the drunk one last night, not me, _Damon thinks as he clears his plate and places it on the sink beside her.

* * *

_Elena was feeling nice, really nice. She'd just had the best day so far, went shopping and got a new hair cut! Her freshly cut bangs bounce nicely, she thought to herself smiling. After leaving the hair dresser she went back to the apartment and left her shopping bags there and decided she wasn't going to set down alone in there. So, she had gone in search of a bar, and found one where she now sat, a drink in hand. _

_She lost count after the tenth martini and the three tequila shots. She was quite drunk and having fun being drunk and flirtatious._

_She was using flirting as her way to fund her drinking—seeing as she wasn't twenty one, with the bartender, Chris. He is a handsome guy with sandy blonde hair and the brightest blue eyes she has seen._

_Elena attracted a few of the men in the bar, but one of them got to sit down next her on a bar stool and enjoy her company, Mason._

_Mason is an intern in a law firm; he has a pair of the nicest shade of greenish-honey eyes._

_He seemed nice to her, at least that's what she thought through her alcohol haze, he approached her confidently and slid on the bar stool next her, bought her another martini and started to talk to her as if they'd known each other for years. At first, Elena didn't like the idea of chatting with some guy when she was drunk and is already affected by another guy. Yes she had admitted to herself that she was affected by Damon Salvatore, it's hard not to be but he's bad news_

_And with him being off-limits, she said to hell with it and here she was, being flirtatious with someone she barely knew, "So Mason, do you like my hair?" Elena giggled and threw her now wavy layered hair over her shoulder while giving him a side glance. _

_Mason inched closer to her, he was almost nose to nose with her, and twirled a strand of her hair around his forefinger and looked in her eyes as he said; "I love it. Did you cut it recently?" He asked, and Elena's breath hitched in her throat because of his proximity. _

_She smiled and tried to get her personal space back but not too obviously by taking the strand of hair from around his finger and saying "Yes, today actually. So don't ruin it." She scolded playfully hoping he would take the hint and not get that close again._

_But, as it would appear, he either can't take a hint or is just ignoring it. He inched closer again but stopped and his eyes left her to look behind her. And for a split second she felt relieved to have him distracted but then she was curious as to what distracted him so she made a mistake and turned to none other than Damon Salvatore himself standing near with an expression that doesn't give anything away._

_Damon's eyes finally leave Mason and turn to her, his eyebrows arch for a few lingering seconds and he smirks as she swallows under his gaze._

_Damon strides arrogantly to them and Mason mutters something under his breath that Elena doesn't catch, he backs off from her and settles on his chair just as Damon reaches them, "Well well, look what the cat dragged in. How are you Mason?" He stops behind Mason and pats his shoulder before signaling to Chris, the bartender nods and gets Damon a tumbler of whiskey. Looks like Damon is a regular here since his order is known._

_Mason purses his lips in a thin line before turning to Damon with the most patented, fake smile Elena has ever seen and replied; "Damon, I'm just fine, you? Still bedding every blonde in your way?" He finishes with a smirk that mirrors Damon's._

_Damon replies without turning to him "Not every blonde Mason, but you seem to be doing fine with the increasing brunette female population of New York," giving a lingering glance at Elena._

_Mason is silent and Elena is nervous all of a sudden, sobering up a bit, she belatedly realizes that she is sitting in the middle between two men, two attractive men who obviously from the tension radiating from them, don't like each other very much. _

_She turns to Damon when she feels he's getting closer, what is it with them and invading personal space? She thinks irritated._

_"What do you want, Damon?" _

_"Nothing, just wanted to say nice hair cut." Elena almost smiles at the complement but instead she looks around them as if trying to find something, or someone and asks him, "Where is Annie or Andie or whatever her name is?." _

_Damon shrugs, " It's Andie, and she's not coming. Why do you ask?."_

_"Nothing, just debating my options if she was here and planning to spend a night, can't decide if I should buy ear plugs or maybe not go back to the apartment tonight." She smiles too sweetly at him and his eyes widen for a split second before his smirk make an appearance, "Andie not being here doesn't mean I can't still spend the night with someone, Elena."_

_Elena doesn't comment on that, instead she turns to Mason who was glaring daggers at Damon the entire time when she hears the beat of a familiar song begin, "Do you want to dance?." _

_Somewhere in the back of her mind, Elena knows it's not a smart thing to dance with someone she doesn't know but with alcohol hazing her sense and the seductive beat that's blaring around them, she hears him say: "Yes." Mason is more than happy to dance with her, but when she is about to go with him, Damon grabs her elbows and warns "I wouldn't do that, Elena" _

_"Why do you care Damon?"_

_He purses his lips for a few seconds before he says "I don't care Elena. But you don't know Mason like I do." _

_She stares at him before pulling her arm free from his grasp and heads to the dance floor where people have gathered to dance with Mason, who didn't hear her exchange with Damon._

_As Elena listens closely to the song playing, she recognizes it as "Future Starts Slow" by The Kills, a favorite of hers._

* * *

Elena walks away from him and was just about to get her clothes off of the couch to head for the bathroom when Damon says smugly, "Good morning, Elena." He draws out her name and she stops in her tracks and glares at him before storming off and slamming the bathroom door.

_The bastard! Could he get anymore smug?!_

Her mind begins to drift back to the kiss that they had shared, _that kiss, the way his lips moved against mine, his oh-so-soft lips—_No! Elena halts the thought before it continues as she stands under the spray of hot water in preparation for her first day in college.

Every time she thinks about the kiss, her body heats up and some muscles deep inside her clench at the recollection. So instead, she thinks about what happened the day after, how he treated her and how infuriating he was.

Elena turns off the water, dries herself and starts drying her hair. Her new haircut was a little tricky to handle, but it's a change from plain straight hair. She dresses in a light blue jeans dress with a sleeve that reaches her elbow and the dress reaches just above her knee and a brown thin belt around her waist, a cream colored mid calf high heeled boots, a few bracelets to match the colors she's wearing.

She puts on some make up and ties her hair in a ponytail with her short bangs down.

When she comes out of the bathroom, she finds Damon waiting for her, looking bored out of his mind. He looks like the bad boy from the wrong side of the city, dressed in grey V neck t-shirt that hugs his torso in just the right way, black jeans and his hair slightly ruffled and still partly wet from his shower.

He looks up, giving her an appraising look and gets off the couch sighing heavily, grabbing his jacket while saying; "Finally! I was starting to think you drowned in the shower." He pauses to grab his keys and cell phone, "We're lucky if we make it in time now."

_Infuriating son of a…_ Elena hurries behind him and closes the apartment door, "You didn't have to wait you know, you could've just gone already and I would have found another way to get to college!" She almost shouts as they go down the stairs and walk to his car, he seems unaffected by her anger. "Found another way like what, a ride with Mason maybe? How's the hangover by the way?" He asks, smirking like the devil he is and climbs into the car.

Elena climbs in the passenger seat cursing him silently, _how dare he bring up Mason when he's just like him?!_

* * *

_She dances with Mason for a couple of songs, with the liquid courage she has in her, she starts to dance seductively with him, pressing herself against his body with her back to his front. _

_Elena closes her eyes and pretends that the guys she's dancing with is the one she wants to dance with, a raven-haired guy with mesmerizing eyes. Getting too lost in her imagination, she starts to think that the hands moving up and down her body are Damon's, the way he presses her closer to him and when a pair of soft lips press against her neck, her eyes snap open and sees the very same man she was imagining dancing with a girl, but his eyes are on Elena, dark and tempting._

_Elena, noticing a bit too late that Mason's hands are getting too bold and are roaming her freely, she's drunk but she's still aware of his hands as they get lower and more possessive. She glances at Damon a couple of times, he glances a few times her way and while she tries to appear comfortable, she knows that it's not gonna happen with how Mason is holding her too close._

_She gently removes his hands from around her and turns to face him, "I'm gonna go home now." She half shouts over the music and to her surprise he pulls her back hard against him. _

_" Not yet." He says to her, his eyes glinting. _

_Elena starts to struggle out of his grasp, "Let go of me Mason! Let go of me!" He refuses to let go and instead whispers in her ears; "You're teasing me with this body of yours deliberately, You want me don't you?." Elena is still struggling out of his grasp and to her relief, all of a sudden his arms are no longer around her. She realizes that he's on the floor, nose bleeding and she turns to see that her savior is none other than Damon Salvatore himself. _

_"She said, let me go. You should've let go." Damon says menacingly to Mason, a small crowd has gathered around them. Damon grabs Elena's arm, leads her to the bar, "Take your jacket, were going back, now." He says and he's not to be argued with. Honestly, she has no strength to argue about free will anyway._

_She takes her jacket while he pays for the drinks and then they're out of the door. All Elena remembers after that is that she fell asleep, and through her drunk state, she's aware that she's carried to her bedroom…_

* * *

Elena's eyes widen when realization downs on her, she doesn't remember changing her clothes, "How did I wake up with my pajamas on when I don't remember changing into them?" She asks, her voice slightly raised.

They've arrived, Damon sighs and turns to her while he shuts off the engine, "How do you think?" He gives her a pointed look. She hits him hard on his arm while cursing him; she gets out of the car and slams the door harder than necessary. Before she can get away, he has her trapped against the car door, hands on each side of her but not touching her, "Well I couldn't let you sleep with those impossibly tight jeans on, that wouldn't have been comfortable now, right?."

He says, smirking before he steps back and continues, "Plus, I swore to myself that if there was anything that I've never seen before I was going to throw a dollar at it. But in all seriousness, I saw nothing I haven't seen before."

He turns and leaves her, Elena lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding, watching him walking away and makes a move to head to her first class when she hears someone with a feminine voice that is a few octaves too loud, "Who are you and why are you here with Damon Salvatore ?!."

_Oh boy… now what?_

* * *

_**So who do think that was?**_

_**A/N: **_**So this story has 48 followers and the reviews are almost the half of this number, WHY IS THAT?! Please review ;)**

**Twitter: NoBodyOwnsYou**

**Outfits: promisebreaker . polyvore . com ( Remove spaces)**

**Xoxo**

**Jasmine.**


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